There's a plethora of new, targeted Marriott Chase Offers available that give 10% back as a statement credit. Most of these are specific to one of Marriott's many brands, but there's sometimes one that's good for Bonvoy properties as a whole. The Deal ...
There’s a plethora of new, targeted Marriott Chase Offers available that give 10% back as a statement credit. Most of these are specific to one of Marriott’s many brands, but there’s sometimes one that’s good for Bonvoy properties as a whole.
The Deal
Get 10% back as a statement credit when spending $100+ at various Marriott Bonvoy brands with targeted Chase Offers.
Maximum credit varies by brand – $38, $43, $57, $68, $75 etc.
You must spend a minimum of $100 in order to trigger the offer.
Key Terms
Expires May 29, 2024.
Maximum credit varies by brand.
Offer valid one time only.
Offer only valid on purchases made directly with the merchant.
Offer not valid on purchases made using third-party services, delivery services, or a third-party payment account (e.g., buy now pay later).
Quick Thoughts
These new Chase Offers give 10% back on stays at various Bonvoy properties and seem to max out at $75 back as a statement credit, but there may be other variations out there.
Unlike Amex Offers that are only valid at Marriott Bonvoy properties in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean, Chase Offers are valid anywhere. As a result, if you’re planning on staying in Europe, Africa or Asia, these Chase Offers can be particularly valuable.
It’s also worth noting that, unlike Amex Offers which can only be applied to one card on your account (without some chicanery), Chase Offers can be added to multiple cards. So, even though each offer can only be used once, you could theoretically use it several times if you’re targeted for the same offer on more than one card.
Update 4/19/24: Reminder that this event is next weekend. If you can make it to Toronto, it should be a great opportunity to learn from some great speakers.
In April of 2024, I (Nick) will be speaking at The Travel Summit in Toronto, Canada and there are just a couple of hours left to get early-bird pricing for those interested in attending. Greg spoke at last year’s event and he not only enjoyed it very much but also picked up some useful information. This conference is at the higher end of the pricing spectrum, but it looks like it’s going to be a great time.
Travel Summit Details
In addition to my presentation, the schedule is packed with interesting presentations from many experienced speakers. Here are the primary details of the event:
Dates: April 26-28, 2024
Location: Metro Toronto Convention Centre (MTCC) in Downtown Toronto, Canada
Cost:
Early Bird (though 9/30/23): $349 CAD + taxes.
Regular (though 3/31/24): $399 CAD + taxes
Last-Minute (through 4/25/24): $449 CAD + taxes
Save $25 CAD with coupon code FREQUENTMILER (Frequent Miler will also earn a commission when you use this code). Alternatively, use this link to auto-populate the coupon: thetravelsummit.com/FREQUENTMILER. After taxes and the discount are factored in, the total comes to $366.12 (~$270 USD) for an early bird ticket or $394.37 CAD (~$291 USD) for a regular ticket $424 for a last-minute ticket (~$308 US dollars.
VIP Ticket: There is also a VIP Ticket that gets you access to an exclusive Friday evening banquet with event hosts and speakers at the St. Regis Toronto, including dinner and drinks, and other VIP perks over the weekend (I don’t yet know what those will be). The VIP ticket costs $995 CAD.
Ticket Inclusions:
Access to The Travel Summit Toronto 2024 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre
Keynote presentations, panel discussions, and breakout sessions across 2 days
Networking with expert travelers
Lunch on Saturday & Sunday
Saturday evening party (at the Westin Harbour Castle Toronto.)
Special offers from leading travel brands
Prize draws and giveaways
Video recordings of all presentations
Sessions & Schedule: Found here. Note that there will also industry guests on hand from Air Canada, Air France/KLM and BILT. This year, attendees will choose breakout sessions from four key travel themes: The Points Beginner, The Frequent Flyer, The Freedom Seeker, and The Content Creator. The full list of sessions and event agenda can be found at https://thetravelsummit.com/#sessions. Attendees will get access to video recordings of the breakout sessions after the event
My topics: I’ll be speaking about Killer credit card combos and together with Josh Greenberg I’ll discuss Year 2 with a Credit Card: Keep, Switch, or Cancel?
VIP Ticket: What’s more, purchasing a VIP Ticket gets you access to an exclusive Friday evening banquet with event hosts and speakers at the St. Regis Toronto, including dinner and drinks, plus many other special VIP perks to elevate your experience over the weekend.
Is it worth it?
Readers always wonder whether in-person events are worth the cost in terms of the ticket price and also the cost of hotel and travel expenses. That’s always a tough question to answer (in large part because the answer isn’t universal). Personally, when I got started in miles and points, I had spent about a year reading as much as I could and then I was in the midst of a year of collecting miles and points when a friend of a friend told me about a miles and points conference. I hadn’t even known such a thing existed. I attended thinking that I knew everything I needed to know but curious to see what I might be missing. Suffice it to say that there were far more holes in my game than I had realized. My mind was blown — and a few years later, I ended up here at Frequent Miler.
In the years since, I’ve always enjoyed getting to miles-and-points events both for the camaraderie of being in a group of folks with a common interest and for the networking opportunities of building relationships with people who can help you succeed. Many of the best tips I’ve gotten over the years have been thanks to connections made at conferences like this.
The Travel Summit takes place in Canada, though many speakers are US-based, including names readers may know like Spencer Howard of Straight to the Points, Julia Menez of Geobreeze Travel, Senitra Horbrook of PointsTravelher (and formerly of TPG), and Matt Kepnes of Nomadic Matt. You’ll also likely know some of the Canadian names like fellow Boarding Area blogger Anshul Singh of Points Miles and Bling and Ricky Zhang and the team from Prince of Travel. There are more than 20 confirmed speakers thus far.
If you’re new to the game, I’m sure you’ll get a ton of value out of a weekend of focused sessions with top-notch speakers. And if you’re farther along, I expect that you’ll still learn some new tips but you’ll also have a chance to hone your networking in the lobbies and social hours. As Greg has written before, a lot of things in this game are easier with a network of friends ((travel with friends, learn underground manufactured spending tips, find friends with Hyatt Globalist status who can share their benefits with you, find out about deals that haven’t yet hit the blogs, etc.).
It is hard to compare one conference against another and I have not yet personally attended The Travel Summit, but I look forward to the chance to connect with others who love the hobby at this event. If you do join me at this event, please stop me and say hello — I love to meet readers!
If you’ve continued to be shocked by the price of rental cars for upcoming trips, there’s a Turo Amex Offer which could save you money on their alternative rental service.
The Tesla we rented through Turo
The Deal
Spend $150 in one or more transactions with Turo and get $30 back with an Amex Offer.
Key Terms
Expires October 17, 2024.
Only U.S.-issued American Express® Cards are eligible.
Limit 1 enrolled Card per Card Member across all American Express offer channels.
Valid online at US or Canada version website turo.com or through the US and Canada version merchant mobile app. Must book directly with Turo.
Cars must be returned and completed by offer end date. Drivers under age 25 may have to pay higher rates.
Not valid for Turo Shop and Turo gift card transactions. Excludes Community Benefits, previously completed trips, and payments made directly to hosts.
Limit of 1 statement credit per Card Member. You may not receive the statement credit if we receive inaccurate information or are otherwise unable to identify your purchase as qualifying for the offer.
Statement credit will appear on your billing statement within 90 days after 10/17/2024, provided that American Express receives information from the merchant about your qualifying purchase.
Quick Thoughts
In case you’re not familiar with Turo, it’s like Airbnb for cars. People list their cars on Turo and you can rent it from them. Their website and app allows you to filter by price, vehicle type, make, location, etc.
We had our first experience with Turo when we rented a Tesla for my 40th birthday. The car’s owner was lovely and we had no problems at all, so it was a great way to experience driving a Tesla without the large expense of actually buying one ourselves.
It’s not only good for driving exotic cars, but it has the potential for saving you a decent amount of money versus a regular rental car too. My wife and her friend flew out to California to celebrate their 40th birthdays together for a mini road trip along the west coast. They rented an Audi Convertible for 9 days and it only cost an average of $47 per day. That was lower than even the cheapest rental cars were going for at the time, let alone how much they would’ve had to pay for a convertible from Hertz, Avis, Budget, etc.
It’s going to be hard convincing Shae to continue our road trip in our 2004 Toyota Corolla now
There’s a six-figure offer back again on the Chase Aeroplan Card, but to unlock the full bonus you’ll need to do a lot of spend. This might be appealing for someone who intended to spend heavily on the card anyway toward earning elite status.
Information about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy.
FM Mini Review: Great card for regular or frequent Air Canada flyers
Earning rate: 3X Air Canada ✦ 3X grocery stores ✦ 3X dining ✦ 500 bonus points with each $2K calendar month spend, up to $6K spend per month (1,500 points max) ✦ 1X everywhere else
Card Info: Mastercard World Elite issued by Chase. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees.
Big spend bonus: Renew 25K status w/ $15K spend ✦ Status Boost w/ $50K spend ✦ Priority Reward w/ $100K, $250K, $500K, or $750K spend ✦ Free award companion for rest of calendar year and all of next with $1Million spend
Noteworthy perks: Discounted award pricing ✦ Free checked bag ✦ $100 credit for NEXUS, Global Entry or TSA PreCheck every 4 years ✦ Carbon offsets on Air Canada awards ✦ Pay Yourself Back for travel at 1.25 cents per point, up to 50K points per year ✦ 10% bonus when transferring Ultimate Rewards to Aeroplan (25K max bonus/year)
At first glance, this offer doesn’t look very strong given that you can transfer to Aeroplan from all of the major transferable currencies. If you’re after 100,000 Aeroplan points, there are a multitude of ways to get there with far less than $20K spend.
On the other hand, the Aeroplan card certainly has some appeal. With $15K spend, you can keep 25K status and with $50K spend, you can get a status boost up to the next level from whatever level you have earned based on flight activity.
The card earns 3x at grocery stores and on dining and 500 points points with each $2K spend up to $6K spend per month, so it certainly isn’t an unreasonable card to use for those categories. If you would already consider using this as a primary grocery and/or dining card, then meeting the $20K spend in the first 12 months to unlock the second piece of the bonus may be simple and that additional bonus essentially gravy.
Keep in mind that Air Canada elite status offers expanded award availability and better pricing on flights operated by Air Canada.
Additionally, Chase Aeroplan cardholders can currently redeem a Aeroplan points to “pay yourself back” for travel purchases at a value of 1.25c per point. That could certainly have a large draw and it makes the bonus categories potentially even more appealing.
I’m a big fan of the Aeroplan program and Aeroplan points, but as noted above there are lots of other ways to earn Aeroplan points. Amex has continued to provide opportunities for excellent welcome bonuses, so for the time being I think I would be more likely to continue to keep an eye out for their no lifetime language offers.
That said, I am glad to see that they have moved away from the “award certificates” to a bonus made entirely of points, and at a total bonus of 100K it puts this card in line with airline card bonuses that have been offered on other Chase co-branded cards. I think that for anyone who was already considering getting the card, this bonus will probably make a lot of sense.
Newegg frequently sells discounted gift cards and today they’re offering a 10% discount on Carnival gift cards. The deal can potentially get better than that if it’s stacked with an Amex offer and/or earnings on an Amex Business Gold card.
The Deal
Buy $500 Carnival gift cards for $450 from Newegg when using promo code SSMDRA528
This Newegg deal is the same discount, but has the potential to be better thanks to some stacking benefits depending on what payment cards you have.
There’s a Newegg Amex Offer giving 2% back that’s good on multiple purchases and is valid on up to $12,500 spend. That expires at the end of April, but there have been Newegg Amex Offers each month for several months now and it seems to get reupped pretty much as soon as the last one expires. If you happen to get that offer on an Amex Business Gold card you’ll also earn 4x Membership Rewards provided this happens to be one of your top two earning categories this month.
You’ll have to be fairly quick though as this offer is due to end tonight (April 19). Newegg sometimes lists an end date for their gift card deals but then extends them indefinitely, but these deals they sometimes run on Carnival gift cards don’t tend to fall into that category.
